CD/SACD-проигрыватели и транспорты — Audio Note CD 5.1x

The Audio Note CD 5.1x is a one-box, top-loading Red Book player of compact discs made by the British company Audio Note (UK), placed by the maker as a Level Three product in its hierarchy of source components. Audio Note describes it as a completely new design architecture for its CD players. The US list price is USD 30,850, and buyers can choose a fascia of anodised aluminium or black acrylic. It pairs the CDT Three transport with the digital section of the DAC 4.1x, and its digital board is identical to the one in the DAC5 Special, DAC5 Signature and Fifth Element converters.

Key specs that matter

The player gives a reference output of 2.4 V RMS through balanced XLR sockets and 1.2 V RMS single-ended through a double set of RCA sockets, with an output impedance of about 5 ohm on both. Channel balance is held within 0.2 dB. Conversion is handled by the Analog Devices AD1865 DAC. The chassis measures 142 mm high, 445 mm wide and 428 mm deep, and the unit weighs 16.8 kg. Maximum power consumption is 48 W, and the mains input can be set for AC 100 to 120 V or 220 to 240 V at 50 or 60 Hz.

Engineering and use context

The drive inside is a Philips CD Pro 2LF mechanism loaded from the top, custom modified in-house and given an improved power supply for its motor section. Its optical pick-up is a three-beam semiconductor laser working at 780 nm. The DAC chip draws its power from a discrete supply based on an ultra-low-noise open-loop shunt arrangement. Between transport and converter, a dual differential SPDIF buffer feeds digital transformers designed by Audio Note, wound with silver on the transport side and copper on the DAC side. Current-to-voltage conversion uses dual copper-copper I/V transformers wound in-house on larger cores. The analogue line stage is derived from the M5 Line Preamplifier design and is valve based, with one 5814a and one 5687WB feeding a pair of 35 to 1 step-down output transformers that have SHiB double C cores and copper primaries and secondaries. The high-tension supply is valve rectified and regulated using a 6X5 and an ECL82. Passive parts include Audio Note's own foil and Mylar capacitors, its own electrolytic capacitors, and a mix of 0.5 W and 1 W non-magnetic tantalum resistors in the critical positions.

Pairing

Balanced XLR sockets suit a preamp or integrated model with balanced inputs, while the dual RCA pairs allow two single-ended components to be fed at once.

Alternatives

The Audio Note CD 4.1x is a top-loading one-box CD player from the same company, combining the CDT Two/II transport with an upgraded DAC 2.1x and using the AD1865N converter and two ECC88 output valves.